As you probably know from reading past articles, there’s no time of year when we stop drinking IPAs. West Coast, New England-style, milkshake, and imperial IPAs, we love them all. But, during the cold winter months, we especially enjoy cold IPAs.
Back in 2018, Portland, Oregon’s Wayfinder created the style when it launched its bold, hoppy, resinous Relapse IPA. Since then, brewers from coast to coast have tried their hand at this style that, in the simplest terms, is made by fermenting at a much lower temperature than other IPAs on the market. This is similar to the way ales are brewed. The result is a crisp, bitter, floral, dank, citrus, and tropical fruit-filled IPA delicious any time of year — especially great as a respite from the cold winter wind.
Since we’ve mentioned its wintry appeal, it’s time to actually find some cold IPAs to imbibe. That’s why we decided to pick eight popular riffs on the style and rank them based on flavor and seasonal appeal. Keep reading to see them all.
8) 10 Barrel Rock Hop
ABV: 7.1%
Average Price: $10.99 for a six-pack
The Beer:
This 7.1% cold IPA is known for its citrus and dank pine with surprisingly low bitterness due to the addition of Azacca, El Dorado, Idaho 7, and Cashmere hops. As a bonus, a portion of sales goes to Trailkeepers of Oregon, a not-for-profit that works to maintain hiking trails in the state.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a ton of orange peel and pine on the nose but really not much else. The palate continues this trend with some light tropical fruit flavors paired with the citrus and dank, slightly bitter pine needles at the finish. Overall, it’s sort of bland and lacks the crisp flavor profile we expect in a cold IPA.
Bottom Line:
This isn’t a bad beer. It’s also not a great beer. It’s just kind of an okay beer. This is mostly because, while it calls itself a cold IPA, it doesn’t really taste that much like one.
7) Smuttynose Ice Dam(n)
ABV: 6%
Average Price: $11.50 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans
The Beer:
This beer is known for being a crisp, flavorful IPA that bridges the gap between West Coast and East Coast IPAs. It’s brewed with 2-row and Carahell acidulated malts as well as Chico yeast and flaked rice. It gets its hop flavor and aroma from the addition of Hüll Melon and Centennial hops.
Tasting Notes:
It smells like a classic IPA. Tropical fruits, citrus peels, and pine needles are prevalent on the nose. Sadly, the palate isn’t as exceptional. While it has some tropical fruit, citrus flavors, and some light malt flavor, the bitter, piney hops are a little too much at the forefront and overpower the other flavors.
Bottom Line:
This beer would benefit from a little more balance between the hop bitterness and the malts and fruit and citrus flavors.
6) Sweetwater Glacial
ABV: 6.3%
Average Price: $10.99 for a six-pack
The Beer:
Sweetwater is well-known for its IPA brewing prowess. And while you can’t go wrong with any of its popular year-round brews, during the winter months we prefer this cold dry-hopped, Cryo hop IPA that is known for its crisp, dry, refreshing flavor profile.
Tasting Notes:
On the nose, you’ll find grapefruit, tangerine, light malts, and floral, dank, piney hops. Drinking it reveals notes of brown bread, grapefruit, pineapple, orange peel, and resinous, earthy, herbal, pine needles. The finish is dry, crisp, and slightly bitter.
Bottom Line:
This is a decent take on the cold IPA style. It’s crisp and has a nice malt backbone. Its only downfall was that it’s just not all that exciting in terms of overall flavor.
5) August Schell Fresh Prints
ABV: 6.5%
Average Price: $10 for a six-pack
The Beer:
This 6.5% cold IPA is like a ramped-up version of a classic West Coast IPA. Like other cold IPAs, it’s cold fermented like an ale and carries tropical fruit, citrus, and crisp, pilsner-like flavors. What’s not to love on a cold winter night?
Tasting Notes:
A lot is going on with this beer’s nose. Guava, mango, pineapple, bready malts, grapefruit, and herbal, earthy, piney hops aromas greet you. The palate continues this flavorful trend with lemongrass, honeydew melon, grapefruit, pineapple, freshly baked bread, and dank, slightly bitter pine. The finish is crisp and lightly bitter.
Bottom Line:
This is a well-balanced, flavorful IPA. It’s kind of like a West Coast IPA with an edge. It tastes like you mixed a lager and a piney, bitter IPA.
4) Rogue Knuckle Buster
ABV: 6.1%
Average Price: $11.50 for a six-pack
The Beer:
Available from January through April, this popular cold IPA is brewed with Superior Pils and flaked rice as well as a melange of hops including Hallertauer Blanc, Belma, Nelson Sauvin, Motueka, Comet, and Cascade hops.
Tasting Notes:
The nose is all wet grass, freshly baked bread, citrus peels, and floral, herbal hops are potent on the nose. The palate is loaded with tropical fruits, citrus, bready malts, and resinous, dank hops that tie everything together nicely. It’s dry, lightly bitter, and surprisingly easy to drink.
Bottom Line:
This is the cold IPA for the classic IPA fans. Especially those who want a nice, crisp, hoppy beer to drink while they watch football.
3) Karl Strauss What’s Cooler Than Being Cool
ABV: 6.9%
Average Price: $13 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans
The Beer:
This aptly named cold IPA is brewed with 2-row malts as well as Citra, Cascade, El Dorado, and Mosaic hops. It’s brewed at a lower temperature with lager yeast and the addition of flaked corn gives it the crisp flavor of a classic pilsner.
Tasting Notes:
The aroma is cereal grains, sweet corn, grapefruit, lemon, wet grass, bready malts, and bright piney hops. Sipping it brings forth notes of sweet grains, freshly baked bread, pineapple. Grapefruit, tangerine, and gently bitter, herbal, dank hops at the finish. It tastes like you mixed a pilsner and West Coast IPA together in the best way possible.
Bottom Line:
This cold IPA has a nice balance of bready malts, citrus peels, and dank pine. Everything seems to be working in perfect harmony.
2) Wayfinder Original Cold IPA
ABV: 7%
Average Price: $5.99 for a 16-ounce can
The Beer:
As we mentioned before, Wayfinder invented the Cold IPA back in 2018 when it released Wayfinder Relapse IPA. This beer, brewed to pay homage to Relapse Records was the brewery’s attempt to make an “extreme” version of the classic West Coast IPA. Now, this crisp, clean IPA is called Original Cold IPA.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a ton of tropical fruit and citrus in this beer’s nose. It’s highlighted by tangerine, grapefruit, mango, guava, and peach flavors. This is paired with caramel malts, and light, herbal pine. This is all carried onto the palate where grapefruit, orange peels, lemon zest, peach, pineapple, mango, sweet malts, and dry, slightly bitter hops take center stage.
Bottom Line:
It’s tough to beat the OG. This cold IPA is fruity, piney, slightly bitter, and has just the right amount of drying crispness at the finish.
1) Fremont Legend
ABV: 7%
Average Price: $12 for a six-pack
The Beer:
The year-round offering from the folks at Fremont features 2-row Pale and Pilsner malts as well as flaked corn, Citra, Centennial, Citra Cryo, and Strata hops. The result is a fruity, citrus-filled, slightly bitter IPA well-suited for any time of year.
Tasting Notes:
Ripe berries, wet grass, caramelized pineapple, peach, grapefruit, orange zest, and floral, herbal, and earthy pine is prevalent on the nose. The palate continues this trend with a ton of caramel malt flavor up front followed by tangerine, pineapple, peach, mango, wet grass, and gently bitter, piney hops.
Bottom Line:
When it comes to well-balanced, crisp, flavorful cold IPAs, you’ll have a hard time finding one better than Fremont Legend. It might not be the first, but it’s arguably the best.
